


Let's Start With The Truth

by EmonyDeborah



Category: Cheers
Genre: AU, Engagement, Episode s06e08 Biddin On The Boys, F/M, Frasier tells Lilith about Nanette, Honesty, Kissing, Nanette Gooseman, but this should have happened
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-20
Updated: 2018-12-20
Packaged: 2019-09-23 17:45:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,177
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17084843
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EmonyDeborah/pseuds/EmonyDeborah
Summary: Sam was right, all Frasier had needed to do was follow him and Lilith to the hotel to prove his devotion. They've apologized, they've made up, what's holding him back?This would have been the PERFECT moment in the show, but nooo, they had to spring Nanette on us and make Frasier into more of a jerk than he already was. Good grief, the man's a psychiatrist and they want us to believe he wouldn't have seen the necessity of honesty in a relationship?





	Let's Start With The Truth

Putty in his hands, Sam had said. All he needed to do was show up and prove his devotion, and she would be open to any suggestion. She certainly seemed open now, melting into him and allowing him to mold her against his body, honest and loving and trusting.

A flash of guilt pricked his conscience, but he forced himself not to examine it. They’d discussed his insecurities and apologized for their rash actions, all in all a productive night. No need to rip open any more old wounds, or damage the reaffirmed bond of faith and commitment they’d built between them. But another convicting stab stung his conscience, this time accompanied by the thought, “She deserves to know who she’s marrying.’

He tried to lose himself in her; her soft, pliant lips, her silky hair sliding through his fingers, her small, exquisite body pressed against his, shaping perfectly to him.

She was so gorgeous, so perfect, how had he gotten so lucky after being wrong so many times before?

He stiffened at the thought, and pushed himself away, instantly aching for her. But he knew he couldn’t go on, it would be like lying. And Lilith didn’t deserve to be lied to after everything else they’d put each other through that day.

“Frasier?” He blinked and looked down into her eyes, and was almost consumed by the desire to pull her back to him. She had lovely, wide brown eyes that always seemed to see straight into him. More than anything else, they betrayed her emotions, and always managed to draw him in when all else failed.

“There’s something else,” he said, trying not to lose himself in her gaze. “Something-” Her arms were wrapped around him, he unwound them and took her hands. “Something I should have told you before asking you to marry me.” He sank onto the chest at the foot of the bed, and Lilith sat next to him, her hands limp in his.

“You see, Lilith-” He couldn’t look up at her; he watched their interlocked hands as he traced up and down her fingers. “My fear of a failed marriage isn’t only a consequence of my work.” He took a deep breath, and gathered the strength to look up at her. “It’s also a result of experience.” She was completely still, except for her fingers tightening around his. Her stare was practically drilling a hole into his skull. “I’ve been married before.”

Near complete silence filled the room, broken only by the quiet jazz still crooning from the cassette player. Frasier deliberated whether to go on, but Lilith’s empty stare and slow breathing made the decision for him. She was still computing, to continue would overwhelm her. So Frasier waited, hoping he hadn’t doomed his chances with the woman he loved more deeply than he’d ever loved anyone. She took a deep breath, and he braced himself for her inevitable questions.

“When?” she asked dully. “And for how long?” Frasier almost smiled with relief, at least her first response hadn’t been anger. But he sobered quickly at the complete lack of emotion in Lilith’s face. She had shut him out, he was going to have to tread carefully if he ever wanted her to trust him again.

“Years ago,” he said, “when I was in my first year of medical school. Four months in we realized it wasn’t going to work, and we got a divorce.” There was the smallest crease between Lilith’s eyebrows as her sharp gaze bored into him. “The marriage was a mistake,” Frasier continued, once he was certain Lilith was fully present. “We were both young and foolish, it never should have happened.”

“But it did.” Her tone was bleak, but Frasier took small comfort in the fact that she hadn’t drawn her hands out of his. “Did you love her?” Frasier cringed, wishing he could erase that whole chapter of his past.

“Well, obviously I thought I did-”

“That’s what you said about Diane,” Lilith interrupted, the first hints of pain slipping through a crack in her mask.

“What?” Lilith pursed her lips, and now she was the one unable to meet his eyes.

“You said you thought you loved Diane,” she said. Now he remembered, it had been their first real fight as a couple. Lilith had lashed out in her vulnerability, and he’d reacted with great indignance. It hadn’t been his proudest moment.

“And now you say you love me.” Frasier’s eyes widened with panic when he realized what she was implying.

“Lilith, I-” He fumbled for words, his usual eloquence having abandoned him. “What I felt for Diane, and-and Nanette, they were just that, feelings.” He enveloped her hands in his, squeezing her harder than was probably comfortable. “And I do have feelings for you, too,” he hurriedly clarified, “but it’s different, because-” He had a concept, a nebulous idea of what he was saying, if he could just articulate it- “-it’s a choice.” That wasn’t the right word, but he couldn’t think of a better one. It was almost right, anyway, that would have to be enough. “I know you, I’ve lived with you for nine months, and I’ve chosen to love you because I know you’re worth loving.” Something like hysteria rose inside him when she didn’t respond. “Isn’t that what marriage is?” he said desperately. “Choosing each other, to love each other every day?” Lilith stared down at the carpet, lost in thought.

“And you didn’t-” She paused. “-‘choose’ Diane? Or Nanette?” Frasier shook his head. That was one thing he was certain of, neither of those women had been a conscious choice.

“No,” he said adamantly. “I allowed my passions-”  _ Wrong word, don’t say passions about them,  _ he scolded himself. “-to guide me with Nanette. I was convinced I was following my destiny somehow,” he said in a scathing tone. Nanette had been all about their ‘inner deities,’ marrying her had been an impulse decision of the worst kind. “After our divorce, I was determined to dedicate myself to my work. I didn’t pursue another serious romantic relationship for nearly seven years, until I met Diane. ‘Here,’ I thought, ‘is the perfect woman for me! My reward for being patient!’ So I allowed her to use me as she saw fit, certain that everything would fall into place.” Frasier scowled at the floor. After hesitating for a moment, Lilith’s thumbs started rubbing small circles onto the back of his hands. Frasier blinked and looked up at her, eyes wide. Her mouth ticked up at the corners. 

“That’s why,” Frasier said when he had regained his voice, “I resisted talking about marriage, even though I knew I wanted to spend my life with you.” Lilith’s face softened. “I suppose they made me wary of the whole institution of marriage. But it’s nothing to be afraid of,” he continued, his conviction strong in his voice. “Not with the right spouse. Indeed, marriage can be a beautiful thing!” Lilith smiled, a real smile this time, and he grinned back at her.

But she blinked, and her smile faded. She was probably still upset, he realized, and she had every right to be, but he deflated a little at the thought.

“As long as we’re revealing secrets,” she said, and he frowned, “I suppose I have something to tell you, too.” Frasier straightened, wary of where this was going.

“You’re not going to tell me you’ve been married before, too?” he asked, but she shook her head, looking more embarrassed than anxious.

“No, actually, just the opposite. I must confess that our relationship is the first such association I’ve had.” He waited for her to say ‘in years’ or ‘since I was a teenager,’ but she didn’t continue. His jaw dropped even as he scrambled to conceal his reaction.

“You mean to tell me you never dated anyone before you met me?” A tinge of pink crept into her pale cheeks.

“Correct,” she admitted. “My mother once made me go to dinner with a boy from school, but that is the extent of my dating history.” Frasier’s mouth clicked shut and he blinked several times, thrown for a loop. They’d had this conversation, hadn’t they? He remembered her asking about several of his ex-girlfriends, had they never gotten around to her past?

“So all of this-the dinners, the arguments, even the nicknames-it’s all new to you?” Lilith nodded, and the pink darkened ever so slightly. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Why didn’t I tell you that at the age of twenty-seven I had never participated in a romantic relationship?” she said incredulously. “I would think it would be obvious.” Frasier shook his head, his brow furrowed in confusion, and Lilith sighed. “I was embarrassed, Frasier. I thought I would lose your respect.” Frasier blinked, still struggling to understand.

“Well, that’s not the case,” he said slowly. “If anything, my respect for you has grown with the knowledge that you haven’t married every man who has carried you out of a bar.” Lilith frowned, and a reluctant grin spread across Frasier’s face. Lilith huffed. 

“This is why I was hesitant to tell you,” she said, scowling and finally trying to pull her hands out of Frasier’s.

“No, darling, I wasn’t-” Frasier schooled his expression into one of contrition, but Lilith wasn’t convinced. She did let him keep holding her hands, though. “Thank you for sharing, I’m glad you opened up to me,” he said sincerely, and her lips twitched into a small smile. “And-” Now his expression was one of complete remorse. “-what I told you...I’m sorry I never told you before. I should have.” Lilith leaned forward and kissed his cheek.

“You’re forgiven,” she said softly, lingering near his ear. Frasier slowly turned his head, giving her time to back away if she wanted to.

She didn’t.

Within seconds her lips were sealed to his and she had straddled his lap. He was pressed rather uncomfortably against the footboard of the bed, but he couldn’t have cared less. All Frasier was concerned with was where to touch first; he ran his hands over her thighs and up her back, eventually tangling them in her luscious hair.

Another prick in his mind. He barely kept himself from groaning into Lilith’s mouth, couldn’t his brain just let him enjoy something?

But this time it was excitement distracting him, reminding him of the slight tug weighing down his suit pocket.

“Wait,” he gasped, and Lilith moaned her frustration into his neck. “No, you’ll enjoy this one, just a moment-” He fumbled with his pocket, his heart pumping madly as he pulled out a small box. “Here.” He relaxed slightly as the box drew Lilith’s attention away from his neck. “I know my proposal at the bar wasn’t very romantic. And, I know we agreed on only wearing wedding rings, but this is tradition.” Lilith had taken the box and was turning it over in her hands, a crease appearing between her eyebrows. She didn’t open it, and Frasier pressed a soft, lingering kiss to the side of her neck as her brain raced to catch up with this new development. She turned her head slightly, and he pulled back to look up at her. 

“Lilith Sternin,” he said, “I’m yours, body and soul.”  _ Not anyone else’s,  _ he thought, and saw in her eyes that she understood. He gently pulled the box from her hand and opened it, revealing the elegant, silver diamond ring inside. “Will you do me the honor of being mine?”

She looked up at him. She smiled. “Yes, Frasier, I will.” 

Unreasonable, giddy elation swelled in Frasier’s chest. She’d already said yes, he shouldn’t have been this exhilarated, but he couldn’t help the exuberant grin widening on his face.

He plucked the ring out of the box and shut the lid, laying the container aside. The ring fit perfectly, tight enough that it wouldn’t be loose but just large enough that Frasier was able to slide it up Lilith’s finger without trouble.

Lilith was beaming as she kissed him again, and Frasier finally relaxed completely into her embrace, having revealed all his secrets. 

_ No, no, not you now-  _ He tried to follow Lilith as she leaned back, but she managed to break the kiss.

“Is there anything else?” she asked, cocking an eyebrow. Frasier dove forward on his seat, letting Lilith fall back just enough that she squeaked and grabbed the lapels of his jacket before he caught her.

“I love you, Dr. Sternin,” he said, and she wrapped her arms around his neck, still feeling close to falling. 

“I love you, too, Dr. Crane.” He couldn’t bear being part from her another second, not even to tease her. He kissed her again, straightening and standing as he did so. She wrapped her legs around his waist as he walked around the bed, and pushed him down to crawl on top of him when he sat on the mattress.

Frasier’s mind was kind enough not to interrupt him again after that.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! Nanette has always been a thorn in my side, since the second I saw her. I wish this had happened, so Lilith could wipe the smug look off her face when she did turn up.  
> What did you think? Leave a comment and let me know :)


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